Sunday, November 25, 2012

Putia rajbari, Rajshahi

Staying on the main road
from Dhaka to Rajshahi, Puthia stands regarding 40 km short of the last
Divisional centre.

Access by a side road off
the major street lies the Puthia ‘Complex’, with its splendid late 19th
Century Palace, and some of the finest Hindu temples within the country.

The first structure to
catch the eye as you draw near is the white plastered Shiva Temple, which, with
a small pavilion beside it stand reflected in a lake. Somewhat defaced, it is
said, by marauding Pakistani troops during the Liberation War of 1971, the
essentials, nevertheless remain intact.

Moving on, across yet
another pond, surrounded by a greensward, when not occupied by fairs or
exhibitions, stands the magnificent 13 pillar facade of the palace.

Built in 1895, two years
before in Great India trembling that shattered so many earlier buildings in
Bangladesh, and led to a positive passion of building for stand-in, it has
survived to crumble gradually, occupied, now, as a teacher training college. A
little over 100 years, and it certainly won’t last another century. Hemanta
Kumari Devi, who ordered its construction would probably be glad of its present
use, but saddened by its state.

To one side, and a little behind,
stands the nearly two hundred year old Govinda Temple. In manifestation and
structure, not unlike the more famous Kanthiji Temple near Dinajpur. But whilst
Kanthiji, perhaps, may boast even finer earth friezes, Govinda Temple has
reserved the spires that the trembling brought down at Kanthiji.